EP1688825B1 - Power system providing power to at least one component including circuit for minimizing effects of power interruptions and method of using the same - Google Patents
Power system providing power to at least one component including circuit for minimizing effects of power interruptions and method of using the same Download PDFInfo
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- EP1688825B1 EP1688825B1 EP06250187A EP06250187A EP1688825B1 EP 1688825 B1 EP1688825 B1 EP 1688825B1 EP 06250187 A EP06250187 A EP 06250187A EP 06250187 A EP06250187 A EP 06250187A EP 1688825 B1 EP1688825 B1 EP 1688825B1
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- power
- signal
- component
- state
- input
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- G—PHYSICS
- G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
- G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
- G06F1/00—Details not covered by groups G06F3/00 - G06F13/00 and G06F21/00
- G06F1/26—Power supply means, e.g. regulation thereof
- G06F1/30—Means for acting in the event of power-supply failure or interruption, e.g. power-supply fluctuations
Description
- The United States Government has acquired certain rights in this invention through Government Contract No. Z20544 awarded by the U.S. Department of Advanced Research Projects Agency.
- The present invention is directed to a power system that provides power to at least one component configured to perform a self-test after a power interruption and method of operating such a power system, and, more specifically to a power system that provides power and a control signal to at least one component, wherein the component is configured to perform a self-test after a power interruption only if the signal from the power source is detected and a method of operating such a system.
- When digital processor based electronic equipment is powered up, it generally goes through a series of self checks variously known as Power-Up Self Test (POST) or Start-up Built-in Test (SBIT). These self-checks often include procedures that detect faults that could become latent failures or cause malfunctions of a system.
- Running a POST or SBIT takes a certain amount of time. During a normal power-up, the amount of time is generally not critical because the system is generally not in a state in which operation of the equipment is critical. However, if the equipment is in an operating state and a power interruption occurs, it may be desirable to return the equipment to an operating state as quickly as possible to avoid unsafe operating conditions. The effects of waiting for a self check to run under such conditions range from inconvenient to disastrous. This would be particularly true, for example, if the digital processors at issue are controlling a moving vehicle such as an aircraft. It is therefore desirable to provide a power system having components that do not perform their normal power up self tests after certain types of power interruptions.
- These problems and others are addressed by the present invention which comprises, in a first aspect a power system comprising:
- a power source having a power output and a signal output and shiftable between an off state and an on state supplying a given power from said power output, said power source producing a signal on said signal output for a period of time when said power source shifts from the off state to the on state;
- a plurality of components, each component having a power input and a signal input, connected to said signal output of said power source,and each component shifting to a diagnostic state to perform a power up self test when power at said power input rises from below said given power to at least said given power and a signal is present on said signal input and shifting to a second state to bypass the power up self test when power at said power input rises from below said given power to at least said given power and no signal is present on said signal input, the second state not including a power up self-test.
- Another aspect of the invention comprises a method for operating a power system comprising a power source for supplying power to a plurality of components configured to perform a power up self test upon startup, comprising the steps of:
- operatively connecting a signal output on the power source to a signal input on each component;
- sending a signal from the power source to each component over the signal input for a period of time when the power source shifts to a power supplying state; and
- allowing each component to perform the power up self test after a power interruption only if the signal is present on the signal input .
- These and other aspects and features of the present invention will be better understood after a reading of the following detailed description together with the following drawing wherein:
-
Figure 1 schematically illustrates a power system including a power supply and first and second components connected to the power supply according to an embodiment of the present invention; -
Figure 2a is a graph illustrating the power level at the power supply output at a plurality of times; -
Figure 2b is a graph of the signal output on the signal line output of the power supply at the plurality of times; -
Figure 2c is a graph of the power level at the power input ofcomponent 1 at the plurality of times; and -
Figure 3 is a flow chart illustrating a method according to an embodiment of the present invention. - Referring now to the drawings, wherein the showings are for purposes of illustrating a preferred embodiment of the invention only and not for the purpose of illustrating same,
Figure 1 shows a power system designated generally by thenumeral 10 that includes apower supply 12 having apower output 14 and asignal output 16.Power system 10 further includes afirst component 18 having apower input 20 connected topower output 14 ofpower supply 12 and asignal input 22 connected tosignal output 16 ofpower supply 12. A second component 24 includes apower input 26 connected topower output 14 ofpower supply 12 and asignal input 28 connected tosignal output 16 ofpower supply 12. It should be understood that additional components can be connected topower supply 12 in a similar manner. The system may be found, for example, in anaircraft 40. - Referring now to
Figures 2a - 2c ,power supply 12 is shiftable between a first or off state and a second or on state.Figure 2a illustrates this shift occurring at time t0 at which time the power output frompower supply 12 increases from 0 (or some other minimal level) to a normal operating level. As illustrated inFigure 2b , at or shortly before time to, apower supply 12 produces anoutput signal 30 fromsignal output 16 for a period of time which is may be on the order of several milliseconds. In the present embodiment, the signal is a logically high digital signal which is received atsignal inputs second components 18, 24. - First and
second components 18, 24 are configured to perform a power up self test under normal start up conditions but to forego this normal self test under abnormal conditions when it is desirable forcomponents 18, 24 to become fully operational quickly. FromFigure 2b it can be seen that a signal is sent frompower supply 12 to the first andsecond signal inputs second components 18, 24 only for a brief period of time, from time t1 and time t2. First andsecond components 18, 24 will only perform a normal power up self test if they detect a signal on theirrespective signal inputs power inputs 20 offirst component 18 rises to a normal operating level from below a normal operating level and no signal is present onsignal input 20,component 18 will not perform a normal power up self test. If a signal is present onsignal input 22 offirst component 18 at a time when the power detected atpower input 20 rises from below a normal operating level to a normal operating level,first component 18 will perform a normal power up self test as the presence of the signal atsignal input 22 indicates that a normal power up is occurring. - As illustrated in
Figure 2c , the power level input topower input 20 offirst component 18 rises to a normal level at time τ0 along with the power output ofpower source 12. The drop in the output signal from powersupply signal output 16 does not affect either the power level at powersource power output 14 or the power level at firstcomponent power input 20. -
Figure 2c illustrates several power level fluctuations that may be seen byfirst component 18 which may be caused, for example, by lighting or other external electromagnetic signals, or by transient problems in thepower system 10.Figure 2c illustrates the power atpower input 20 offirst component 18 falling to 0 from time t1 to time t2 and then returning to its original level. From the constant power level produced bypower source 12 during this time interval, as shown inFigure 2a , it can be seen that this power drop was not cause by a power fluctuation inpower supply 12 but rather by an external problem such as lighting. Because no signal is present atsignal input 22, as seen inFigure 2b ,first component 18 does not perform a normal power up self test when the power atpower input 20 rises from below a normal ' operating level to an operating level. - Referring again to
Figure 2c , the power level atpower input 20 can be seen to decrease at time t4 from a normal level to a lower-than-normal level before returning to normal at time t5. As is evident fromFigure 2b , neither the power output frompower supply 12 nor the signal from powersupply signal output 16 changes, and therefore,first component 18 does not perform a power up self test at time t5 when the power level atpower input 20 returns to normal. - Second component 24 functions in the same manner as
first component 18 and therefore its operation will not be described separately. However, it should be noted that power fluctuations may affectfirst component 18 and second component 24 either jointly or individualty. Therefore, it is possible that, for example, second component 24 will not experience a power drop at time t2. - As discussed above, it is desirable for
first component 18 to become operational quickly. Therefore, in some cases, when the power level atpower input 20 increases to a normal power level,first component 18 will immediately return to full functionality. However, for certain components, such as components that control moving parts, certain readying steps must be carried out when power is applied before the component can become fully operational. Such steps do not diagnose conditions of the component, but may comprise, for example, returning an actuator to an initial position so that its position thereafter can be accurately detected. Moreover, other components may require an abbreviated self-test before becoming operational and will perform such an abbreviated test before becoming fully operational. In any case, components used in connection with this embodiment of the invention will become operational more quickly when no signal is present onfirst signal input 22 that when a signal is present. -
Figure 3 illustrates a method according to an embodiment of the present invention that includes the a step of providing a power system that includes a power source supplying power to at least one component at astep 40, a step of operatively connecting a signal output on the power source to a signal input on the at least one component at astep 42, sending a signal from the power source to the at least one component over the signal input for a period of time when the power source shifts to a power supplying state at astep 44 and causing the at least one component to perform a diagnostic test after a power interruption only if the signal is present on the signal input at astep 46. - The present invention has been described in terms of an embodiment. However, numerous additions and modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the relevant arts upon a reading of the foregoing description. It is intended that all such modifications and improvements form a part of the present invention to the extent that they fall within the scope of the several claims appended hereto.
Claims (10)
- A power system (10) comprising:a power source (12) having a power output (14) and a signal output (16) and shiftable between an off state and an on state supplying a given power from said power output (14), said power source (12) producing a signal on said signal output (16) for a period of time when said power source (12) shifts from the off state to the on state;a plurality of components (18, 24), each component having a power input (20, 26) and a signal input (22, 28), connected to said signal output 916) of said power source (12),and each component (18, 24) shifting to a diagnostic state to perform a power up self test when power at said power input (20, 26) rises from below said given power to at least said given power and a signal is present on said signal input (22, 28) and shifting to a second state to bypass the power up self test when power at said power input (20, 26) rises from below said given power to at least said given power and no signal is present on said signal input (22, 28), the second state not including a power up self-test.
- The power system (10) of claim 1 wherein said second state comprises an operational state.
- The power system (10) of claim 1 wherein said second state comprises an abbreviated diagnostic state followed by an operational state.
- The power system (10) of claim 1 wherein said second state comprises a non-diagnostic readying state followed by an operational state.
- The power system (10) of claim 1 wherein said plurality of components (18, 24) comprises a first component (18) and a second component (24) operating independently of said first component (18).
- An aircraft (40) including a power system according to claim 1.
- A method for operating a power system (10) comprising a power source (12) for supplying power to a plurality of components (18.24) configured to perform a power up self test upon startup, comprising the steps of:operatively connecting a signal output (16) on the power source (12) to a signal input (22, 28) on each component (18, 24);sending a signal from the power source (12) to each component (18, 24) over the signal input (22, 28) for a period of time when the power source (12) shifts to a power supplying state; andallowing each component (18, 24) to perform the power up self test after a power interruption only if the signal is present on the signal input (22, 28).
- The method of claim 7 wherein said step of sending a signal from the power source (12) to each component (18, 24) over the signal input (22, 28) for a period of time when the power source (12) shifts to a power supplying state comprises the step of sending a digital signal from the power source (12) to each component (18, 24) over the signal input (22, 28) for a period of time when the power source (12) shifts to a power supplying state.
- The method of claim 8, wherein said step of causing each component (18, 24) to perform a diagnostic test after a power interruption comprises the step of causing only ones of the plurality of components experiencing a power interruption to perform a diagnostic test after a power interruption.
- The method of claim 7 including the additional step of performing an abbreviated diagnostic test after a power interruption if no signal is present on the signal input (22, 28).
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US11/053,389 US7484126B2 (en) | 2005-02-08 | 2005-02-08 | Power system providing power to at least one component including circuit for minimizing effects of power interruptions and method of using same |
Publications (3)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
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EP1688825A2 EP1688825A2 (en) | 2006-08-09 |
EP1688825A3 EP1688825A3 (en) | 2008-05-07 |
EP1688825B1 true EP1688825B1 (en) | 2010-12-01 |
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Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
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EP06250187A Active EP1688825B1 (en) | 2005-02-08 | 2006-01-13 | Power system providing power to at least one component including circuit for minimizing effects of power interruptions and method of using the same |
Country Status (3)
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US (1) | US7484126B2 (en) |
EP (1) | EP1688825B1 (en) |
DE (1) | DE602006018546D1 (en) |
Families Citing this family (3)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
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WO2008095225A1 (en) * | 2007-02-08 | 2008-08-14 | G2 Microsystems Pty Ltd | Conserving power using miniature applications |
EP2850531A1 (en) * | 2012-05-13 | 2015-03-25 | Kuruppu, Indrajith | A system of data handling based on periodic interruptions to electricity supply |
US20200286575A1 (en) * | 2019-03-06 | 2020-09-10 | Goke Taiwan Research Labratory Ltd. | Apparatus and Method for Testing Storage Device in Power Interruptions |
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-
2005
- 2005-02-08 US US11/053,389 patent/US7484126B2/en active Active
-
2006
- 2006-01-13 EP EP06250187A patent/EP1688825B1/en active Active
- 2006-01-13 DE DE602006018546T patent/DE602006018546D1/en active Active
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
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US7484126B2 (en) | 2009-01-27 |
EP1688825A2 (en) | 2006-08-09 |
EP1688825A3 (en) | 2008-05-07 |
US20060179332A1 (en) | 2006-08-10 |
DE602006018546D1 (en) | 2011-01-13 |
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